A man who has won a $3.06 million jackpot in India is fed up with the overwhelming numbers of requests for financial helps he is now receiving, according to reports.
The lottery winner, who is known by his first name and the first letter of his last name only (Anoop B.), is an autorickshaw driver from the southern Indian state of Kerala.
He won the huge jackpot—the biggest ever offered in Kerala—in a state government lottery earlier in September, as reported by national media.
According to reports, 32-year-old Anoop B. brought the winning lottery ticket on September 17, a day before he was supposed to head to Malaysia for a job as a chef. On September 18, he discovered he won the state lottery's first prize.
"I was overjoyed when I won," Anoop B. recalled about the news of his victory in a recent video published on his Facebook profile. "There were people and cameras at the house and we were happy."
But Anoop B.'s luck was soon followed by the many requests of strangers asking for a part of his victory, the man said. A week later, writes the BBC, Anoop B. posted a video asking people to stop asking him and his family for loans and financial help.
"I wish I hadn't won," Anoop B. said, as quoted by the BBC. "The third prize may have been better," he added.
The man, who's shared on his social media that he's yet to receive the money, said he is now considering moving from his house to get rid of the unwanted attention of those seeking money out of him.
Much as I'm sure we all sympathize with the man's problem, at least he hasn't got to deal with winning the $685 million Powerball jackpot handed out May 2021, one of the biggest prize winners of all time.
In the United States, the biggest lottery games, Powerball and Mega Millions, are in a league of their own when compared to other lotteries around the world. But unlike in the U.S., European jackpots are often tax-free, meaning winners take home the full sum.
The Indian man continued: "I can't leave the house, I can't go anywhere. My child is ill and I can't take him to the doctor."
"All I can tell everyone is that I haven't gotten any money yet. No-one seems to understand my problem, no matter how many times I say it."
Anoop B. reportedly lives with his wife, child and mother in Sreevaraham in Thiruvanathapuram. According to reports, he has been buying lottery tickets for the past 22 years, winning some prizes but never one as big as this latest jackpot.
Asked by Indian media about how he intends to spend the money, Anoop B. said he wants to build a house for his family and clear some debts, as well as help out his relatives and do some charity work.
The Kerala state government said it will offer Anoop B. a day's training program on financial management to help him make the best of the jackpot.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Giulia Carbonaro is a Newsweek Reporter based in London, U.K. Her focus is on U.S. and European politics, global affairs ... Read more
